Journalists injured in clashes between Georgian Dream, UNM supporters in Marneuli

Another incident took place in Marneuli yesterday between members of the ruling Georgian Dream and the opposition United National Movement during which several people, including two journalists and two cameramen of the Mtavari Arkhi TV, as well as a cameraman of the Public Broadcaster, were injured.

Majoritarian candidate of the United National Movement MP Azer Suleimanov said that members of the UNM Gia and Lasha Kveladze were also injured during clashes in Marneuli.

The car of Givi Kveladze, our representative of the Central Election Commission, was parked here, when several supporters of the Georgian Dream arrived. Specifically, Amiran Giorgadze, Chairman of the City Council, started swearing. After that, several more men came, including athletes, who started the physical conflict. As a result, Givi Kveladze and his son were injured. They are at the hospital. The car is completely destroyed", he said.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs has launched an investigation into the Marneuli incident. Director of the Kvemo Kartli Police Department Lasha Gogliashvili said that an investigation was launched into inflicting bodily harm and illegal interference with a journalist's professional activities.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs has not arrested anyone so far in connection with the incident. Gogliashvili explained that the police do not have full information about the attackers yet and an investigation is ongoing to identify the offenders.

Meanwhile, another incident took place in Zugdidi, Samegrelo. According to the Georgian Central Election Commission representatives of the election bloc United National Movement – United Opposition, Strength is in Unity were 'disrupting the work' of Zugdidi District Election Commission (DEC). 

They are not allowing Precinct Election Commission (PEC) members to take the necessary personal protective equipment (PPE) from DECs to organise the first sessions at PECs amid pandemic. During the entire evening, political party representatives were blocking the entrance of the DEC, exceeding their authorities and were not allowing the PEC members to enter DEC; by doing so, they were deliberately disrupting the electoral process", reads the statement published by the commission last night.

The commission once again called upon local and international observer organisations to monitor the facts of 'pressure having the character of an election campaign, which disrupts the Election Administration to implement activities defined by the legislation'.